BRISBANE IN 45 MINUTES
Passenger rail line business case a Budget sweetener for city
TOOWOOMBA to Brisbane in just 45 minutes is a dream that’s now $15 million closer, but getting the passenger rail by 2041 isn’t soon enough for our region’s leaders.
Funding for the business case to determine how this long-held dream may become a reality has emerged as the big Budget sweetener for the region after other - cheaper - priority projects were left unfunded.
But Toowoomba Mayor Paul Antonio and Lockyer Valley Mayor Tanya Milligan have welcomed the business case funding, and are united in getting the project under way in time to boost the 2032 Olympic Games Bid.
■ How Toowoomba’s civic and industry leaders reacted to Treasurer Scott Morrison’s Budget inside.
LINKING Toowoomba to Brisbane via the Lockyer Valley in 45 minutes would be a “great boost” for the Garden City, but it can’t take 23 years to get it happening.
Toowoomba Mayor Paul Antonio lauded the $15 million business case funding for a passenger rail link to the state capital, but it’s needed before 2041.
It’s the missing, and critical, link identified by CommSec’s mass people movement study completed for the South East Queensland Mayors’ 2032 Olympic Games bid.
“It would mean an awful lot of development for the Toowoomba area, and the reality is that Toowoomba would become a very desirable place to live if you could hop on a train and 45 minutes later, be in Brisbane,” Cr Antonio said.
“I think that would be a great boost for Toowoomba.”
That benefit would flow to the Lockyer Valley region which welcomed the funding under the Federal Government’s $250 million Major Projects Business Fund in the Budget.
“I’m delighted to hear such a substantial amount of money has been put aside for a business case and although it shows a great level of commitment, more still needs to be done,” Lockyer Valley Mayor Tanya Milligan said.
“The push for a passenger rail service has been a great collaborative project between not only Paul Antonio and myself, but also SEQ mayors and the benefits it would bring to the Lockyer Valley alone are enormous.
“If we were connected to Brisbane and Toowoomba by rail I could see a lot of additional investment coming to our region, new residential areas being developed, jobs growth, sustainable and affordable housing options not to mention real connectivity to Australia’s third largest city.”
Toowoomba and Surat Basin Enterprise CEO Ali Davenport said the business case funding was a “big windfall” for the region.
“It is going to determine how good it is going to be for our economy, not only tourism but the increased connectivity between Brisbane and Toowoomba,” she said.